11.11.11

Did anyone make any special 11-11-11 plans? I didn't, but I did have a full and awesome day! :)

On busy mornings I like to eke out a few of these body weight moves- no equipment necessary, and a great way to start your day!

I had two rehearsals in the AM, so I grabbed a Clif Kid Zbar and an apple to munch on while I headed to school. The apple was mushy awfulness (few things make me angrier than mushy apples...) but the bar was delish! :)

There are a TON of trees on the Brooklyn College campus and they're ALL turning- GORGEOUS!

After rehearsal I ran into Manhattan with Joe to meet up with a writer/director to discuss some exciting collaborative performance opportunities for 2012! More details soon!

We picked up a few supplies and then it was over to the our friends' home to celebrate the pre-5th birthday of my super-boyfriend, CHRISTOPHER! I've known this little dude since he was in his mom's tummy and I'm still having trouble believing he's five already! (Read about our beach shenanigans, barbeque shenanigans, soccer game shenanigans and baseball game shenanigans!) Christopher's mom made a delicious baked ziti that we inhaled before I even though to take a picture! After dinner, it was present time!

Here we are, stretching before an epic play session. Safety first. Always use mindfulness and commitment while stretching- do I look like I'm kidding around?

 Christopher's birthday gift from Joe and I! He liked it!

 Getting ready to play...

 After our game, Christopher blew out the candles on his pumpkin birthday doughnut!

Pumpkin yeast doughnut from Doughnut Plant- DELICIOUS!

We also grabbed a blueberry cake doughnut and a salty peanut butter cake doughnut- epic!

The Vanilla Bean, Valhrona Chocolate and PB &J doughnuts were ALL divine!

We share things...

 Like crazy blueberry teeth!

 More game playing happened...

 Followed by some super fancy improvised partner yoga.

 We're pretty magical...

 Christopher and I NEVER want to stop playing...

 ...And usually have to be pulled apart.

Joe gets hugs too, but Christopher keeps him at a distance. They ARE rivals, after all.

I had a blast! Thanks to Jon and Maya for being such awesome hosts, and happy fifth birthday Christopher!

Creamy Apple, Pumpkin and Delicata Squash Soup

Fall cooking is my absolute favorite! I adore creating filling, warming, sweet and savory creations that taste decadent but pack a nutritional punch, which is why I was so excited to participate in Swanson's Blogger Recipe Contest! I love shopping at Swanson Health because of their wonderful variety and incredibly low prices- check them out! This recipe is as simple as can be- I'm a HUGE crockpot fanatic, but if you don't have a crockpot this could also easily be adapted for a stovetop. 

It is with much pleasure that I present to you my 

Creamy Apple, Pumpkin & Delicata Squash Soup!

Get the Ingredients for My Recipe from Swanson Health Products:

-1.5 cups canned pumpkin
-2.5 cups 0% Greek Yogurt (I used Fage)
-1 Delicata squash
-6 small-medium sized apples (variety is great- I used Macs and Empires)
-1 cup water
-2 heaping tablespoons NOW Nutritional Yeast Flakes
-1 tablespoon Swanson EFAs Certified Organic Milled Flaxseed
-1 tablespoon Swanson Organic Garlic Powder
-1 tablespoon Swanson Organic Agave Nectar
-1 tablespoon cinnamon
-1 tablespoon curry powder
-1 tablespoon Soy Flour (can substitute with most any flour)
-shaved carrots and asiago (or another sharp cheese) for garnish

1. Get your game face on.

2. Rinse and half a beautiful delicata squash! Scoop out the seeds (for roasting, if you wish)! Place squash halves face down in a microwave safe dish with 1/4 inch water and microwave for 10 mins. Scoop out squash meat.

3. Rinse, peel, core and slice apples.

4. Combine all ingredients in a crockpot set on high, stir well, and leave for 2 hours.

5. Remove from heat, blend and garnish with carrot shavings and shredded asiago cheese!

6. Rejoice and stuff your face!

I recommend this for an appetizer or side dish- it's VERY rich. If you'd like to serve it as an entree, I'd suggesting adding chunks of roasted squash or pumpkin or perhaps a protein- chicken, white beans... to break up the richness... 

Give it a try and let me know how it turns out!

What's your favorite fall soup?

DIY Chai

Does anything say "fall" like a warm Chai on a chilly day? I adore Chai tea lattes but am turned off by how excessively sugary most Chai concentrates are. My solution? Cheater's DIY- not from scratch, but still homemade!

You'll need:

2 cups water

2 cinnamon sticks

6 Chai Teabags (I like Tazo)

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 dash allspice 

5 drops liquid stevia

1 teaspoon agave nectar

2 teaspoons Sun Crystals (or other low/ no- sugar natural sweetener)

*Note- I like differentiating my sweeteners- you could theoretically use any one of these (agave, stevia, Sun Crystals... and just increase the quantity to taste)

Begin to bring water to a boil. Add cinnamon sticks. As water starts to boil, add teabags and sprinkle in allspice. 

 After boiling for a minute, remove from heat and allow to steep for four minutes (over-steeping can lead to over-extraction which makes black teas taste exceedingly bitter- don't leave it in too long). Remove tea bags and cinnamon sticks. 

Add sweeteners. 

And vanilla.

Transfer to a jar or container and store in your fridge! 

 Add as much as you'd like to your favorite warm milk- I added mine to soy! Hot, steamy goodness with a hint of sweetness and plenty of Chai flavor!

Pot Luck Lovin'

I've been lacking in the posting dept lately- forgive me! Holy school-related craziness... Annnddd.... breathe. 

Yesterday was a stay at home and bust out some work day- I selected what I thought would be a quick and easy lunch... 

 It was certainly delicious, but easy? ummmm....

 Oops. Note to self- unless a package explicity states "microwave uncovered", then always, always cover it.  Lame. 

In the late afternoon I called it a day- I got a lot done, but  my to-do list is still a mile long... I stopped early so that I could start preparing for my classmate-potluck!

First up: Sweet Bonbon Squash Curry!

In a crockpot, combine 2 cups water, 1 cup apple cider, one peeled and cubed bonbon squash, six peeled and chopped carrots, 2 minced/ pressed cloves of garlic, 2 tbsp peanut flour, 1 tbsp soy flour, 1 packet onion soup mix, 1 teaspoon curry powder, 1/2 teaspoon turmeric, 1 teaspoon garam masala. Cook on high for 2-3 hours.

Bonbon squash are a lot denser than your average squash, which makes for insanely labor-intensive prep. They're delicious, so they're worth it, but holy moly, did this baby take a long time to dismember... I probably could have stabbed it with a fork and microwaved a bit to make my life easier, but I like to be difficult...

Next up- Delicata Squash Pizza! 

These beauties have a gorgeous, delicate flavor (hence the name...) and are so tender!

After rinsing and cutting the two squash length-wise, I scooped out the seeds and placed them face-down in a microwave-safe dish in about 1/3 inch of water and microwaved on high for 10 minutes. I used TJ's Herb Pizza Crust and scraped out the squash meat to spread like sauce on the dough. I added some TJ's Ginger Mango Chutney and topped with a bit of cheddar cheese. I threw this into the oven at appx 375 for 20 mins. Perfection.

And then my guests began to arrive! Patrick and Aaron were first- I wasn't totally done cooking, but they entertained themselves just fine...

 Wii Sword Fighting. Things got competitive. 

Jonny, Sarah and Andrea arrived soon after! Sarah brought these delicious mocha-brownies. So rich, chewy and flavorful!

Andrea brought fixin's for a salad! Yum!

 Finishing up food prep with my lovely ladies (Andrea- L, Sarah- Center). 

And then, it was feeding time! Patrick made some bangin' stuffed peppers and I whipped up some basmati to go with the curry. We were all happy campers- everything was delicious!

For dessert I whipped up a French Apple Cobbler using some of the apples from my apple-picking excursion (I followed the suggestions and doubled the topping but reduced the sugar for both the apples and the batter). 

 French Cobblers consist of a fruit mixture topped with a batter-topping...

The result is almost like a super moist dutch pancake or apple cake! Delicious!

Topped with a creme sauce- just heavy cream, vanilla and confectioner's sugar whipped together- a bit less airy than whipped cream!

Can you tell that we're obsessed with each other? We spend practically every waking moment together during the school week, but we still need to socialize. For realz, I love these guys. Mi acting famiglia. 

From L to R- Aaron, Jonny, Me, Patrick, Sarah and Andrea- the Brooklyn College MFA Acting Class of 2013, minus our homeboy Jeremy, who lives in Queens, which is the opposite end of the earth from my apartment in South Brooklyn. He was missed!

Do you host pot lucks? Have you attended one recently?

Apples and Doughnuts and Cocoa, OH MY!

Yesterday was a LONG OVERDUE date day with my favorite husband! We both desperately needed a mental break, so we headed upstate to enjoy the fall weather and found ourselves in Gardiner, NY at Wright's Farm!

 Can you tell I'm excited? Happy coincidence- they serve Green Mountain Coffee (I recently discussed my belief in Fair Trade coffee, so this made me very happy)!

The colors were stunning- so vibrant! 

It had rained a bit before we arrived, so everything looked fresh and dewy! And... muddy.

Good thing Joe had a game plan. 

 Do not even get me going- the shirt, the pants, the white socks, the velcro shoes... Where to begin? Yep... we're married. 

It was a bit chilly (it was pretty mild in Brooklyn so neither of us brought sweaters... oops... as an upstate native I should know better...) so we headed up to the orchard and got right to work! 

 The best part about apple picking is tasting a fresh-from-the-tree apple! Many orchards have a one-sample-per-picker policy, which makes sense- I could easily eat 20lbs of apples before ever putting one in my bag, so keep it under control, people! :)

 Giant Mutsu. Oh, yeah.

 There were parts of the orchard where the ground was literally littered in apples- beautiful! I'm sure the local woodland critters are grateful.

 So much variety. 

 I chose a Macintosh for my sample! Yum!

 Sometimes I get artsy with Joe's random candid-shots...

 It's an unspoken rule that large rocks in outdoor locales DEMAND dramatic photoshoots...

 Or solo performances of Michael Jackson's Thriller Dance... you choose...

 Mad balancin' skills, yo.

 There's ANOTHER unspoken rule that if a large open space presents itself, Joe and I MUST take jumping pictures. You understand, I'm sure...

We were having so much fun, we didn't even notice that our feet were DRENCHED...

After picking, we headed back down to the farm stand to stock up!

Apple cider doughnuts? YES. PLEASE.

We did a quick back-seat change-a-roo, got rid of our muddy duds and then headed into New Paltz for dinner! We decided on the Main St. Bistro.

The interior had a fun, funky retro diner/ cafe feel with TONS of art on the walls!

Joe ordered the Sun Devil- sundried tomato and mascarpone ravioli with asparagus, mushroom, yellow peppers and roasted garlic in a basil pesto and asiago cream sauce. Delicious!

I chowed down on the Robert Eggplant Experience- eggplant lasagna layered with spinach, zucchini and ricotta, served with walnut citron bread. 

 Sweet baby dinosaur, was this delicious. Saucy, veggie-y, creamy, cheesy, sweet and tangy. I found myself longing for a bit more eggplant and a bit less zucchini, but other than that- perfection. 

 The toasted walnut citron bread was the PERFECT sidekick- toasty, crunchy, buttery and fluffy goodness. We were both very pleased with the food and the service!

After dinner we strolled down the block for a visit to the Huguenot Creamery. We selected two combos- pumpkin and apple pie in one dish, vanilla bean and cookies and cream in the other.  Each flavor was decidedly delicious- distinctly tasty but not overwhelming. We chatted with the friendly owner about fall, ice cream and the crazy weather- what a sweet lady!

Before packing it in and heading back to NYC, we dropped into Cafeteria for some warm bevvies for the road. 

What a beautiful place- huge, cavernous and exquisitely decorated in a homey, worn-in, shabby chic sort of way.

 I could DEFINITELY see myself chilling here for 8 hour homework marathons...

I swear my love for this place is only marginally impacted by the fact that the barista who made my hazelnut hot chocolate was really, really cute. Don't worry- Joe knows. 

All in all, a pretty perfect date day! Unfortunately, I'm now feeling a bit under the weather (WHY didn't I bring a sweater???) and I have a MOUNTAIN of homework to catch up on. My day off was worth it, though!

What's your favorite day-trip near where you live? Any that you haven't been on yet but would like to explore?